In recent years, important advances have been made in the development and implementation of communications networks, systems, and devices capable of supporting video calls. For example, communications devices such as mobile phones have been configured with internal cameras and video call software that enable them to make and receive video calls over broadband wireless UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) networks, which conform to the 3G (3rd Generation) family of standards for mobile telecommunications specified by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). In addition, personal computers have been equipped with devices such as webcams and microphones that allow them to make and receive low-cost video calls over IP (Internet Protocol) networks such as the Internet and other packet-switched networks, using Skype applications and other video call applications. Mobile phones, personal computers, and other video-capable communications devices have also been configured to employ other video call applications such as SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) applications that allow them to make and receive video calls over IP networks.
Although important advances have been made in the development and implementation of communications networks, systems, and devices with video capability, the actual usage of video-capable communications devices for placing video calls has tended to advance at a slower rate. One reason for this may be the prevalence of less-than-satisfying user experiences when placing video calls. For example, when attempting to make video calls with video-capable communications devices (for example, video-capable mobile phones or personal computers), users of such video-capable communications devices may encounter one or more possible obstacles to satisfactory completion (if not completion in general) of the video calls. Such obstacles to video call completion may result from attempts to place video calls to users of standard communications devices such as non-video-capable mobile phones, non-video-capable personal computers, or audio telephones, and/or attempts to place video calls through standard communications systems or networks such as audio telephone systems or networks. The terms “standard communications device,” “standard communications system,” and “standard communications network” are employed herein to refer to any non-video-capable communications device, system, or network.
In response to such attempts to place video calls to users of standard communications devices and/or through standard communications systems or networks, the video calls may be dropped from the standard communications systems or networks. The standard communications systems may also send error messages to the users of the video-capable communications devices, indicating that the video calls cannot be completed. Further, the standard communications systems may prompt the users of the video-capable communications devices to record and send audio messages or send e-mail messages to the users of the standard communications devices, or to terminate the video calls and place voice calls instead. In some cases, the standard communications systems may automatically transform the video calls into voice calls to avoid requiring the users of the video-capable communications devices to terminate and re-establish the respective calls.
In each of the above scenarios, however, the standard communications systems typically fail to effectively utilize the video features of the video-capable communications devices, thereby degrading the experiences of the users of the video-capable communications devices. For example, such standard communications systems typically fail to effectively employ the video features of video-capable communications devices when sending error messages to the respective devices, or when prompting the users of the respective devices to perform specific actions. Even in cases where call connections are successfully established between video-capable communications devices and standard communications devices, such standard communications systems are typically incapable of providing any level of control over the video outputs of the video-capable communications devices during the calls, further degrading user experiences and discouraging increased usage of video-capable communications devices. Moreover, although it may be possible to upgrade or replace at least some of the existing standard communications systems to provide video capabilities, wholesale upgrading or replacement of such standard communications systems would likely prove to be cost prohibitive.
It would therefore be desirable to have systems and methods of providing video support for standard (i.e., non-video-capable) communications systems that avoid one or more of the drawbacks of the standard communications systems discussed above.